Oklahoma BBQ Championship To Benefit Food For Kids

Thursday, June 6th 2019, 2:21 PM CDT

By: News9.com

The annual Oklahoma BBQ Championship “Festival of the Pig” will take place June 21-23 at Remington Park. The event will feature local and regional barbecue teams competing for over $10,000 in prize money. The festival, benefiting the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma, will also feature craft beer, classic cars and live entertainment.

The Oklahoma City competition is officially sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS). The winner of the Oklahoma BBQ Championship will advance to the American Royal, the World Series of Barbecue in Kansas City. The Oklahoma BBQ Champion will also be eligible to receive an invitation to the Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue in Lynchburg, Tenn.

“Our theme of the Oklahoma BBQ Championship this year is “Festival of the Pig” in recognition of the thriving pork industry in Oklahoma,” said event chairman Mike McAuliffe. “In addition, it is the year of the pig and it is the 25th anniversary of an event once put on by a group of volunteers called ‘Festival of the Pig’ which also benefited the Regional Food Bank.”

The Oklahoma BBQ Championship has secured the services of Arlie Bragg to coordinate the competition. Bragg is considered one of the premier experts in the competitive barbecue world. Oklahoma City’s event will be one of about 12 competitions that Bragg will oversee this year.

Barbecue teams can register online for the Oklahoma BBQ Championship by visiting the official website at www.okbbqchamp.com. Advance admission tickets for Saturday and Sunday are also available online for $8. Tickets the day of the event will be $10. A limited number of tickets are available online for the VIP kickoff party on Friday evening. Kickoff tickets are $60 and include BBQ, craft beer and the Stars band. The festival will contribute $5 from each ticket sold throughout the weekend to support the Regional Food Bank’s Food for Kids program.

Last school year, the following programs provided more than 2.3 million meals for chronically hungry children. The Backpack Program provides elementary school children identified as food insecure with kid-friendly, nutritious food over weekends and holiday breaks.

The School Pantry Program helps provide after school and weekend meals to chronically hungry middle and high school students.

Kids Cafés bring meals and snacks to children participating in afterschool programs.

The Summer Feeding Program provides children up to the age of 18 with nutritious meals during the summer months when school is not in session.